HAUTE ROUTE_2013

CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT

 

Fan carried an Osprey Atmos 65 backpack that weighed approximately 28-30 lbs fully loaded without water and 37-38 lbs with water (4 liters) and food.  Jie carried Deuter ACT Trail 32 backpack that weighed approximately 25 lbs fully loaded without water and 28-29 lbs with water (2 liters).  The backpacks felt heavy during the first few days.  We quickly became accustomed to the weight, but still had sore shoulders, backs, and feet every day.

 

Fan used an iPhone 4 for photos. Jie used an iPhone 5 and a Nikon D600 with a 17-35mm wide angle lens.  The Nikon had to be packed away during rain or sections with precarious trail conditions, and we briefly debated whether its extra weight (3 lbs including lens) was justified.

 

Waterproof boots, jacket, and pants were essential.  Lightweight down jackets were useful while relaxing in the evenings, especially in the mountains. We did not have gaiters but they would have been very helpful in keeping snow out of our boots.  We brought a few synthetic long and short sleeve shirts, synthetic convertible pants, shorts, wool hiking socks, and some thin sock liners.  Our feet thanked us for the sandals we brought while lounging around hotels and huts at the end of each day.

 

We did not have crampons or ice axes, but we did see several people with them during the hike, and even a few with climbing ropes, harnesses, and ice screws (but never saw them used).  We did have adjustable hiking poles with snow baskets near the tips, which were extremely helpful for ascents, descents, stability during stream crossing and when the trail became narrow and exposed. Micro-spikes or similar mini traction devices for boots would also have been very useful if we had them.

 

Lightweight sleeping bag liners were used when sleeping in dormitory style beds at the huts.  We did not bring sleeping bags, tent, camp stove, etc., because of their extra weight.  There was a party of three UK hikers who did have camping gear and still managed to pack more lightly than us.

 

For carrying water, we used two 2L Camelbak bladders and two 1.0L bottles.  We usually filled up with tap water.  Some mountain huts did not have potable tap water, and in those cases we either bought bottled water or received free boiled water from the kitchen.  On the trail we also filled up water at water troughs in villages and towns.  The water filtration pump was left at home to save weight and space.  We had water purification tablets for emergencies but never needed to use them.

 

The following is a list of some other miscellaneous stuff we packed: head lamps (useful for bathroom visits at night in dortoirs; luckily did not need do any hiking in the dark); pocket knife; wet wipes; first-aid kit; spare shoelaces; lighters; bandanas; caps; swimwear (alas, it was too cold to put them to use); backpack rain covers; sunglasses and sunscreen (essential for sunny days on snowy trails); ear plugs (essential for dormitories); compass; toilet paper; sewing kit; tweezers; small plastic trash bags; snack bars.